Thursday, April 26, 2012

A Family Experience and a Pop Star

My cousin Dr Ronald Craig of Olso, Norway, called me about 6
weeks ago to tell me that his daughter, Norwegian Pop Star Mira Craig is to be the subject of a Norwegian
Broadcasting Company documentary TV program on her family, especially her
American family. They were particularly
interested in the story of my and Ronnie's great-grandparents Joseph and Mollie
Manigault. Joseph, of a once-wealthy
white family in Charleston, SC, was born in 1841 in the Manigault House, home
of my 3rd great grandparents Joseph and Charlotte Manigault, and now part of
the Charleston Museum. He was an
accounting clerk for the Charleston and Savannah Railway, but eventually was
not accepted by his society and family, probably due to his mulatto wife and
children. Mollie Steward was of African
and Native American descent, born on Edisto Island, SC and was trained in the
Indian ways of making medicines, poultices and salves for healing. She was also a locally famed fortune teller,
clothing designer and dressmaker, and owned several businesses including a
vegetable and fruit stand and a moving and hauling company. The Manigaults had eight children born
between 1879 and 1897, including my grandmother Marie and Mira's
great-grandmother Selena.

Mira, Ronnie, Mira's baby son Mio and a Norwegian production
crew came to Charleston this past Monday.
I was honored to represent our Charleston family and to tell the story of Mollie and Joseph.

I spent quite a bit of time reviewing family records and checking
names, dates, and facts in documents and with relatives over the phone in the
days leading up to the visit so I would be ready. The Chief Interpreter from the Charleston
Museum called last Friday with questions about Joseph, as there was very little
told of him in Manigault family documents, and the Broadcasting Company had
sent her a list of questions about him and Mollie. She too wanted to be as
prepared as possible for the interview, as she was to lead them on the
Manigault House tour that would be recorded for the broadcast. I spoke with her on the phone for quite a
while telling her our story, which she said was fascinating.

On Tuesday we were to visit the grave of Joseph, who passed
away 100 years ago this past January, in all-white Magnolia Cemetery and
Mollie's grave in all-black Old Bethel Cemetery, so my grandson Nicholas Roper
and I spruced up the graves this past weekend, scrubbing off mold from the
stones and picking up a little street debris near the cemetery entrance.

I was quite nervous
at the thought of being on television, but my nerves calmed down once we
started filming. I walked Mira and
Ronnie over to Mollie's grave and starting telling them all about her. After a while, I was quiet while Mira spoke
into the camera telling the audience in Norwegian what I had just told her in
my Geechee-accented English.

After a great lunch at Fleet Landing on Concord Street
downtown, the film crew had a ball photographing and recording from the
restaurant's decks overlooking the Cooper River and Charleston Harbor. Then we were off to the Manigault House. We met with Museum staff members and as the
last afternoon tourists were leaving the mansion, the crew started with Mira
and Ronnie coming into the Temple Gate of the property. I had invited family members Debby Hazel,
daughter of my uncle the late Joseph Manigault Hazel, Walter Boags, son of my aunt the late Eleanor Marie Hazel
Boags, and my sister Rovena Hazel Owens.
Rovena and I are the daughters of the late Walter Hazel. My father and all his siblings have now
passed on, so it was a real treat for us to be in that house that they always
pointed out to us as children as they told us of our ancestors. Their spirits were quite evident with us and
a lot of emotions were felt by us all. A
real bonus was being able to move somewhat freely around the house, and even
the third floor, which is not renovated and is off-limits on the tours, which
made this visit really personal for us.
We especially loved spending time in Joseph and Charlotte's bedroom,
which, we noted, is where we were all conceived generations earlier! The Interpreter remarked that Debby very much
resembles Elizabeth Wragg Manigault, our 4th great-grandmother, whose portrait
hangs in the drawing room. What do you think?

The documentary program is to be aired on Norwegian
television next Fall, so hopefully we will be able to view it online or on a
CD.

2 comments:

Huckie, This is so awesome. You know how much I have come to love history since I discovered how interesting 'our' history is. Growing up walking and playing in the streets of Charleston, we were clueless as to paths of our recent ancestors in those very streets.

Thanks Andrea for writing up the encounter. I had been following the exciting news since Ronnie and Mira came to America. Our history is very exciting. Thanks again for e-mailing me, it is greatly appreciated. Victor Craig

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About Me

When I retired as a college mathematics instructor, I couldn't wait to further explore the possibilities of being a full time artist. I started painting in watercolors in 2002 and I fell madly in love with it. Sometimes, I even paint in my sleep! I hope you enjoy looking at my art.